Local News

<< Previous   of   Next >>   ADVERTISEMENT   CONTACT THE HERALD Robert Frank, City Editor frank@heraldnet.com   Published: Wednesday, May 14, 2008 Burglary charge for former Meadowdale High senior Joseph Habte Egzy is charged with five felonies for allegedly sneaking into unlocked homes, then attacking women and children. By Diana Hefley Herald Writer LYNNWOOD -- For three years the stranger slipped into houses under the cover of darkness, snuck into bedrooms and terrorized women and children. The screams of a 10-year-old girl appear to have brought an end to the crime spree, Snohomish County prosecutors said in court papers. Joseph T. Habte Egzy, 18, was charged Friday with five felonies, including first-degree burglary with sexual motivation. He told a judge on Monday he is innocent. He is being held on $1 million bail. Habte Egzy was a senior at Meadowdale High School. He was expelled after his arrest. Prosecutors allege that Habte Egzy was a serial burglar who intimidated, threatened and assaulted people in their own homes. He snuck in through open windows and unlocked doors and attacked women and children, according to court documents. Police caught up with Habte Egzy on April 20, a couple of hours after he allegedly broke into a Lynnwood house and snuck into a 10-year-old girl's bedroom, deputy prosecutor Laura Twitchell wrote in court papers. The girl told investigators she felt something tickling her neck and thought she was having a bad dream. She rolled over and found a dark-clad stranger standing next to her bed. She screamed. The man tried to stifle the girl's screams and forced his fingers into her mouth. The girl bit down and the man pulled out his fingers. The girl screamed again. The man seemed to lose his balance when he leaned over the girl to quiet her again. The girl knocked him to the ground and the man ran out of her bedroom. The intruder's troubles were just beginning. The girl's father, awakened by her screams, confronted the man in the hallway. The burglar broke free and ran out the way he came in, court records said. A police dog following the intruder's trail found Habte Egzy crouching behind a shrub. Detectives say the teen later took detectives on a tour around north Lynnwood, showing at least 10 other houses he burglarized, Twitchell wrote. One house was near where a 19-year-old woman reported being assaulted in her bedroom Christmas Eve 2005. The teen was sleeping when she was awakened by someone pulling the sheets off the bed. A man jumped on top of her, told her he'd tied up her family and threatened to kill her, according to court documents. The man choked the woman for about a minute while he was on top of her. He had removed his pants and underpants. The woman was able to push the man off and he fled. Prosecutors believe Habte Egzy was responsible for the attack. Habte Egzy also allegedly pointed out a house where, on Oct. 23, 2005, a woman awakened at 4 a.m. and an attacker tried to silence her by putting duct tape over her mouth. Habte Egzy was 16 at the time. On Nov. 13, 2005, a woman who answered a 3 a.m. knock on the door and was jumped by somebody who put her in a bear hug. Habte Egzy allegedly told police that he is the person who ran away when she screamed. He's accused of sneaking into the bedroom of a 15-year-old girl early on Dec. 2, 2005. The girl said the intruder claimed he had a gun, placed his hand over her mouth and told her to scoot over, and then fled, court documents said. Reporter Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463 or hefley@heraldnet.com

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